I absolutely loved this book! It’s crazy how Ashley Winstead can write one of my favorite thrillers of all time (In My Dreams I Hold A Knife) and an amazing romance novel as well! 🥂 ⁣
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I loved this second chance romance between Ben and Lee, and also wasn’t expecting as much political talk, but the story always managed to center back around the romance, which I greatly appreciated!
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I also LOVED how flawed Lee was, and how the way she handles relationships is a direct result of the trauma she’s experienced growing up. It was nice to see that the main heroine wasn’t perfect, and that she had her own issues to deal with before she could have a second chance with Ben. It just made Lee feel much more relatable- which made me root for them so much more! 👏🏽 ⁣
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Overall, it was definitely a 5 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ read and I cannot wait to read her latest thriller The Last Housewife when it comes out later this year!! ⁣
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Also- Ashley Winstead is the coolest human ever- she not only watched my reading vlog on YouTube about her books, but she even said to say hi to my dog Zelda- so I know she watched the entire video- she really cares about her fans, and I’ll always be a repeat buyer for her books from now on!

This really lost momentum for me around the halfway point. I couldn’t get over the immaturity (and annoyance) of Lee Stone – affectionately known as Stoner to her friends . She killed my enjoyment of the story. I enjoyed the environmental angle to the story, but most of the characters sucked and I didn't care about them at all. And to make it worse, Lee and Ben have no chemistry, so that wasn't even able to help me enjoy the story.

I fell in love with Ashley’s writing with In My Dreams I Hold a Knife. While this is a totally type of book, I loved it all the same.

Lee and Ben were both such great complex characters. In addition, the side characters also had depth and personalities that really bolstered the story.

While it was a romance at its heart, I appreciated the depth of social issues and mental health woven into the story.

As I was reading this book, I kept thinking about how much I didn't like the lead character. Lee Stone is a professional communications director for an electric car company by day, and "Stoner" the party animal by night. She had a bad breakup in grad school and ever since has been avoiding relationships. Then, Ben, the other half of her bad break-up, re-enters her life. He's working for the governor, and together, they're tasked with pushing through an initiative to utilize electric vehicles throughout their home state of Texas. Needless to say, sparks fly, then they crash and burn, then they fly again, and so on and so on...

What I didn't expect was to still be thinking about this book days after I finished it. Why did I not like "Stoner"? Were there some of my own biases at play here? She unabashedly smokes weed and has casual hook-ups. I'm past that part of my life. So, was I judging her unfairly? Probably.

All in all, a fun read that has some depth to it

Thank you to Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House for the opportunity to read a digital ARC in return for an honest review.

An interesting and not very typical romance novel main character. Sometimes a little on the extreme side. But it was fun to read something a little different in this genre.

“Fool Me Once” by Ashley Winstead is unlike any other romance I’ve ever read 💘⁣
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Thank you to Graydon House/Harlequin Trade Publishing for my gifted copy of “Fool Me Once,” which came out 4/5.
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Full disclosure: I was nervous going into this one. Ashley Winstead’s two thrillers have been favorites of mine and I really didn’t think she could match that energy in a romance. But she delivered a truly feminist romance novel that I enjoyed reading 😱⁣ The twists in this one are truly second to none.
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This one marries an enemies-to-lovers/rekindling-an-old-flame storyline with Sunbelt politics. It takes place in Austin, Texas, but as a Florida resident it still resonated with me. ⁣
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Lee Stoner is comms director for Lise Motors, a female-founded electric vehicle company that’s the fictional foil to Tesla. Lee and Lise are trying to get the Texas legislature to pass a bill to make all public vehicles (ambulances, maintenance trucks, etc) EVs. And who does the Texas governor hire as a policy expert but Lee’s ex, Ben — the love of her life whom she also cheated on. ⁣
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A lot of people claim to be feminists, and even more people shy away from the word. Ashley Winstead not only leans into feminism — she writes contemporary novels that are genuinely feminist while also entertaining as hell. That is no small feat 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻⁣
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If you’re a romance reader or you liked Ashley’s “In My Dreams I Hold a Knife,” you’ll love this one.

After reading 𝘐𝘯 𝘔𝘺 𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘐 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘈 𝘒𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘦, I knew I needed to read more by Ashley Winstead. This one switched up genres and I give kudos to the author because it cannot be easy to switch around like that.⁣
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Lee Stone, aka Stoner, is the Director of Communications for a women-run electric car company. After having her heart broken several times, she has sworn off relationships and sticks to casual hookups. Unfortunately for Lee, the last man who broke her heart is back in town and they find themselves partnered on an important project together. Although lines are quickly drawn, Ben and Lee start competing with each other and eventually flirting as well.⁣
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Lee and her group of friends reminded me so much of my friends. We will lovingly call each other out for BS and give it to you straight. I felt like Lee could have easily fit in with us.
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Ben and Lee went on a wild ride but I was along for it and was rooting for them to get the project done successfully. I don’t typically enjoy politics but Winstead was able to add that element in with ease. I am looking forward to reading more by her for sure! Already got my eyes on The Last Housewife.

I was excited to read this after having finished Ashley Winstead's In My Dreams I Hold A Knife (which I loved). They are two wildly different genres so I was hoping for the best and was not disappointed. The chemistry between Ben and Lee was off the charts and I was rooting for them the entire time, but I was also surprised that I was just rooting for Lee in general the whole time. I loved the character growth and learning about an environment that I am unfamiliar with. I highly recommend this!

Such a fun book! A rom-com with a fun political twist. I want to be friends with Stoner!
Thanks NetGalley for this fun read.

First off, I'd like to thanks Harlequin Trade Publishing, Graydon House and NetGalley for allowing me to read this digital ARC of Fool Me Once.

I had not read the debut book by Ashley Winstead but had seem amazing reviews for In My Dreams I Hold a Knife. So of course I was so excited when I was approved for Fool Me Once. This Rom-Com is incredible and a fun read! I really liked Lee and Ben - they are quirky, passionate, charismatic and more!
The damage that Stoner endured was made clear in the way she carried herself, treated relationships and held a guarded persona - making her not only relatable but also showed her humanity. She's brash and wild and makes huge life-altering mistakes. She's the most human MC I've ever read in a rom-com and it makes the book so much stronger. Really enjoyable read!

On the outside looking in, Lee “Stoner” Stone has it all. A successful career woman under the age of 30, she’s on the fast track to making a name for herself. In her free time though, fun loving, non-committal Lee is far less serious, preferring to love ‘‘em and leave ‘‘em rather than stick around.

See, after experiencing what is not so affectionately dubbed the “four major heartbreaks”, Lee has sworn off relationships for good. Adopting the motto, “do unto others as you assume they will eventually do unto you” are the words Lee learned to live by. It’s also the reason she cheated on and ultimately, blew up, her most perfect relationship years ago before the other shoe could drop.

Now five years later, Lee and the one who got away, Ben are reunited professionally. Although romantic bridges were burned, the two still find themselves joining forces for a passion project they both believe in devoted to clean energy. But as the two work side by side, unresolved feelings begin to surface. Can Lee let go of her commitment issues, or is she destined to commit to political issues only?

Fool Me Once was an interesting, layered take on the popular romance genre. The political backdrop brought substance and significance to the story. While serious political platforms were touched upon, the book still had moments of playfulness and heat. My favorite part was the hilarious Disney based opener.

All in all, Fool Me Once is a political page turner with a passionate payoff.

I'm now a huge fan of Ashley Winstead and will read whatever she writes. I absolutely loved In My Dreams I Hold a Knife and now she's proven she can write rom-coms too. Lee "Stoner" Stone and Ben Laderman are exes who are thrown together to convince the Texas legislature to replace all government vehicles with electric. Sounds impossible but with these two on the task it's not only fun to see how far they'll go to convince these senators to go green but to see old feelings rekindled along the way. Lee is convinced she can never be in love and risk getting hurt again and does everything she can to show that she has no feelings whatsoever for Ben. There are some hilarious scenarios, witty banter, and steamy situations. Loved this book!

I have mixed feelings about this one! I love books with witty banter, great friendships and bad ass females yet I just couldn't seem to like the main character. I know a lot of the book was working on her flaws and her understanding/realizing them but I just found her awful at times!
However, I loved the female empowerment speech at the end, and some of the messages in this book!
I didn't not enjoy it, but it wasn't my favourite by this author! Maybe a 3.5 for me!

I tried so hard to like this book but I just couldn't. I get that the main character is flawed, but everyone in the book was either a cheat or cheated on It was too much to handle.

In My Dreams I Hold a Knife was one of my favorite thrillers last year, so I was excited to read this book! I love that she switched up genres and wrote a romance this time around.

Fool Me Once was a fun romance. The main character, Lee, was relatable and the opening chapter was hilarious! We see Lee grow from someone who doesn’t believe in love to someone who gets her happy ever after. I love that she's passionate about her job and she has the best group of friends. She's someone who works hard, but she knows how to have fun too.

It was a slow burn second chance romance, but the banter between Lee and Ben was witty and their chemistry was on point. My only (minor) complaint about the book was the politics. Lee and Ben were working together to pass an energy bill. I wasn’t really interested, so I found myself skimming those parts. Other than that, I really enjoyed it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I’m not usually a fan of romance books but this was absolutely delightful. I enjoyed the authors thriller and this one was just
As good. I feel like she can write in any genre.

Props to Ashley Winstead for coming out the gate with first a fantastic thriller and following up with an equally rad rom-com. Lee Stone- Stoner to her friends after work hours- does not have it all together, despite having a successful career in a field she loves and is passionate about, and being on the path to the job of her dreams. I love a rom-com with a protagonist who is honestly messy, and it does impact her life. This story is fun and interesting, but also looks critically at politics and relationships.

I didn’t know what to expect going into Ashley Winstead’s first romcom, but FOOL ME ONCE was an incredible surprise.

Filled with faults, mistakes, and mishaps, Winstead paints a pained story of a woman who has been shaped by her lack of trust in men. Lee is strong, powerful, and beyond capable of everything she sets her mind to, but when it comes to relationships, she can’t get past her expectation that they will all disappoint her. From her father to three other major heartbreaks in her life, Lee has sworn off of love - until heartbreak number four, Ben, walks right back into her life after ghosting her five years ago - even if the reasons for it has actually been her own fault.

Forced to work together, Ben and Lee both fill the book with banter and tiptoe around each other. But staying away from one another definitely doesn’t seem to be an option. From forced proximity to workplace romance, this book has a bit of everything and I can’t recommend it enough! Also, as someone who doesn’t tend to follow details of the political world, this book gave me insight to the process I had never considered before.

Although I overall did enjoy this romance, I had a tough time rating it. I enjoyed our characters and the writing was phenomenal, however I did not like the politics side of the story. I struggled connecting with it and didn’t care about that aspect to the story.

Wit, emotion, steam, and laughs - Fool Me Once was a fast-paced, entertaining read from start to finish. It's a combination of enemies to lovers and second chance romance, both of which are go-to romance tropes for me. I love the fire that comes with an enemies to lovers romance, and second chances usually come with some great chemistry. Ben and Lee have that kind of chemistry, so they're easy to root for. Just an FYI, this book does mention cheating. I know that's a no-go for some. Honestly, that didn't change my opinion of the story. I don't agree with it at all on a personal level, and would never condone it, but I realize it happens and this is fiction. What I will say about it is that everything Ashley Winstead did with this story worked for these characters. It was a great way to spend a few weekend hours, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.